Mr Gay World launches legal fight against winner who quit after falling out
Model Louw Breytenbach was issued the gag order earlier in August. (Louw Braytenbach/Instagram)
Mr Gay World has submitted a legal order against 2021 winner Louw Breytenbach after he criticised the pageant.
The 2021 Mr Gay World winner from South Africa was reportedly served with a gag order last week, banning him or any associates from publicly discussing a specific legal subject, according to The Citizen.
It came after he made a statement regarding his time as the reigning Mr Gay World. Breytenbach has since hired an attorney, intent on defending himself.
Tensions between Breytenbach and Mr Gay World arose shortly after his win in 2021 when organisers wanted him to sign a contract that stipulated they would be his exclusive agent for any bookings or acting gigs. He refused to sign the contract and eventually resigned from the position.
“I don’t need them to manage whatever TV opportunities I get,” he said during the height of the controversy. “My suggestion was that they manage me based on opportunities pertaining to the pageant and my role as Mr Gay World.”
The model also criticised another clause which reportedly said he would be hit with a €5,000 fine if he stepped down during his tenure as Mr Gay World, saying it was “unlawful” and “does not make sense”.
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Mr Gay World organisers then made a statement, as reported by The Citizen in a 9 December 2021 article, saying Breytenbach’s claims were “a series of defamatory allegations about the organisation and its officials”.
The foundation is also reportedly attempting to force Breytenbach’s publicist Gavin Prins to retract a press release he sent to his media contact list about the issue in December last year.
Quintin Steyn, representing both Prins and Breytenbach, confirmed in a statement his clients intended to fight against the legal order.
“I took on this case as I believe in the promotion of the LGBTQIA+ community and its growth. When politics are brought into the promotion of the community, it is not very healthy,” Steyn said. “It is important for the younger generation to promote a culture of acceptance.”
Steyn also confirmed the firm had submitted a supplementary sworn written statement from a witness, known as an affidavit, on behalf of his clients.
In a further statement, Breytenbach said the title of Mr Gay World was secondary to his charity goals and work he “started even before the competitions”. He clarified his resignation of the title wasn’t intended to “tarnish the reputation of the organisation”, but rather because of value differences.
“I was excited when I was crowned with lots of plans to build the gay community. But unfortunately, I could not achieve this dream,” Breytenbach explained.
He explained it is his belief that the South African gay community was already extremely oppressed and claimed his activism was not able to flourish while holding the title, saying: “There are real problems out there and we as winners need to get our hands dirty and work.
“My intention was to use the platform to add a voice to the LGBTQIA+ community,” he continued. “As winners, we tend to be blinded by the glitz and glam the contest brings.”
After his resignation, the South African TV presenter was eventually replaced by Bonginkosi Ndima who also resigned shortly after receiving the title.
